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A total of 7,432 people were treated in hospitals in England in 2007/08 after either being hit, struck, kicked, twisted, bitten or scratched by another person.

That was a 47 per cent rise on the 5,044 people who were treated for the same reason in 2002/03.

Some of the injuries will have been suffered within the home but many will have occurred in street fights or other public disorder offences.

David Green, director of the think-tank Civitas, said: "The fact that the source of these figures is hospital A&E points the finger at how the official figures are collated because usually the hospital figures show higher numbers of assaults than those recorded by the police.

"What this shows is the Government's experiment of relaxing the pub opening hours, which they said would calm things down and make for a more relaxing atmosphere, is not well founded."

Around half of all violent attacks are blamed on alcohol and it is a particularly growing problem among women.

Home Office figures last week showed an average of 241 women and girls were arrested every day last year for assault - more than double the rate in 1999/2000.

Although there is currently a downward trend in overall violence, nearly 1.1 million violent attacks were still recorded in 2007-8 - half a million more than in 1998-9.

In October last year, the Home Office admitted that some police forces in England and Wales had not been recording offences of gross bodily harm with intent as serious violent crime, meaning levels of serious violence had been underestimated.

A Home Office spokeswoman said: "Violent crime has fallen by almost one half since 1995 and the chance of being a victim is at its lowest level since 1981. We are determined to tackle violence in all its forms.

"That is why we have put record numbers of police on the streets and are working closely to further reduce violent crime and help make communities feel safer.

"Alcohol related violent crime has fallen by a third in the last 12 years. We are committed to tackling those irresponsible practices and promotions which encourage binge drinking and lead to crime and disorder. We have launched the £10 million Know Your Limits campaign to challenge drunkenness and have recently spent £4.5 million to clamp down on those who break the law."